


Visible

by coolbreezemage



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Bathing/Washing, Body Image, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Scars
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-19 04:47:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,676
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22705336
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coolbreezemage/pseuds/coolbreezemage
Summary: Dimitri would have much preferred to bathe alone. The vulnerability of naked skin was something he’d long ago come to despise. But he couldn't be so arrogant as to ask Ashe to leave.
Relationships: Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd/Ashe Duran | Ashe Ubert
Comments: 4
Kudos: 76





	Visible

There was nobody else in the baths when Dimitri entered, just as he’d hoped. He undressed quickly, efficiently, and stepped gratefully into the hot water. The heat stung for a few moments before becoming a soothing balm against his aches. 

He thought he’d timed it well enough to be assured of some privacy. That morning Mercedes and Dedue had declared their intention to use the evening to test a collection of baking recipes Lysithea had unearthed in the depths of the library. Which meant that most of the students and no few of the teachers had contrived reasons to wait in the dining hall in hopes of being gifted samples fresh from the ovens. 

Then he spotted a ruffled silver head by the far edge of the main pool. It was Ashe, eyes closed and cheeks flushed from the steam. 

His eyes flicked open when he noticed someone enter, and he splashed upright in surprise when he realized who it was. “Oh! Your Highness. I wasn’t expecting anybody here.”

“I thought the same,” Dimitri said. “I assumed you especially would be in the kitchen.”

“I will be!” Ashe assured him. “But I wanted to clean up first. Dedue said it would be a while before the spice cookies are ready.”

Dimitri nodded. “I remember him talking about them. I’m sure he’ll save some for you in any case.” He always did, whenever he made something one of him classmates especially liked. 

“I’m looking forward to it! I helped buy some of the ingredients. They smelled really delicious.”

They had. Dimitri hoped the others enjoyed the finished treats. 

“You did well in Shamir’s lesson today,” he said. 

“I’m glad!” Ashe said. “I practiced with that new bow all last week. I think I’ve got the hang of it now. And you’ve taught me so much too.”

Their training was going well, all things considered, in both bow and lance. Dimitri worried a few times that he’d used too much force in their sparring, but Ashe had met it with confidence and a willingness to learn. And that he might soon be willing to consider them, at least while they were students, as equals, both students learning for the good of the Kingdom, that was very promising indeed. 

Ashe hesitated. “I’ll be done soon, if you don’t want-“

Dimitri held up a hand. “No, it’s all right. You don’t need to move.”

He couldn’t be so arrogant as to insist on it, but in truth Dimitri would have much preferred to bathe alone. Or with Dedue, if Dedue didn’t insist on behaving as a servant even when they were the only ones in the room. The vulnerability of naked skin was something he’d come to despise during his long recovery after the Tragedy and the daily humiliation of exposing his wounds for the palace healers to examine and prod and talk over his head about as if he couldn’t hear.

But he was grateful for the care even so. Most in the Kingdom couldn’t have hoped for such skilled healers as the ones who had saved his life and ensured he could fight as well or better than any uninjured man. Ensured he would be able to work to avenge those who should have lived.

He trusted Ashe, of course he did, but even here, he remained wary. Attack could come at any moment, any place. He couldn’t afford to ever let his guard down entirely. 

He sank deeper into the water, twisted his shoulders and reached back to knead at knots there, then ducked his head under the water and brushed his dripping hair out of his eyes before reaching for a bar of soap on the shelf beside the pool. Mint and spice, he thought, from the dark flecks in the creamy surface. One of Dedue’s blends, meant to soothe and refresh. He allowed himself the small pleasure of breathing in the scent. 

And then he saw how Ashe’s eyes caught and lingered on his skin. On his scars. Innocent as he was sure Ashe’s gaze was, Dimitri didn’t appreciate being stared at, even by his friends. The marks from a lifetime of hard training, those were unavoidable and unremarkable, and he was certain most students of Garreg Mach bore such, or would very soon obtain them. But the ragged scars that served as daily reminders of the treachery that had slaughtered everything he loved, those he would rather keep from curious eyes. The dark stain of a hideous burn across his left hand and arm, matched by one like a demon’s clawed hand at his chest. The starburst of a cursed arrow at his shoulder. The thick lines across his back carved there by his own soldiers’ blades. Thanks to Dedue’s care, they only rarely ached, and long training had ensured they did not impede his movement on the battlefield or training grounds. But he would rather not have Ashe ask for those stories now, when he was tired and worn and wished only to clean the sweat from his skin and ease his muscles. 

To put voice to it would only distress Ashe needlessly, so Dimitri settled for giving him a pointed look across the pool. It must have been sharper than he intended, from the way Ashe shrank away from it. 

Ashe shook his head, clearly upset. “I’m sorry. That was rude of me. I don’t mean to make you uncomfortable. Especially here.” He looked away, and then back, unsure but clearly not finished speaking. 

Dimitri paused, waiting for Ashe to say what he wanted to without interrupting. He was very grateful that Ashe finally felt he could speak freely around him, but somehow it seemed that also meant he would tangle himself up in his words all the worse. 

“You lead us so well, and everybody expects so much from you… you deserve some time to relax without being judged.”

“I thank you,” Dimitri started, letting his tiredness mask his confusion. “You needn’t worry. I’ve… grown accustomed to them. And the looks from strangers.” Ashe winced. In truth Dimitri would rather not speak of this, but if Ashe was to be close with him it was better Ashe understood, and Dimitri trusted him with the knowledge. “I don’t wish to discomfit others,” he said, running the soap over the rough, stretched skin that was all that remained of his burns. “Or have them believe I am more experienced than I am. I haven’t fought enough battles to deserve that praise.” As if there was anyone who didn’t know what he had suffered in Duscur, and that the dead had suffered far worse… He screwed his eyes shut and shook his head, hoping to clear the images that crowded behind his eyes. 

“I think you deserve a lot of praise,” Ashe said, speaking quickly, as if he thought he couldn’t get the words out otherwise. Dimitri opened his eyes. Ashe’s expression through the steam was entirely earnest. As it always was. “You haven’t fought as much as some of the knights, sure, but when you do it’s for good reasons. To protect your people. That’s what good people do.“ Ashe smiled. “And... and you shouldn’t feel bad about how you look! I like how you look.”

He meant it. Somehow, he meant it, saw in Dimitri a leader and not a damaged mess... Dimitri smiled as best he could. It was easier in the sleepy warmth. “Thank you, Ashe. This time is important to me. My months at the Academy have been the most pleasant ones I’ve known in a long time. I could not have counted near so many friends in Fhirdiad.” It was true. Even now the thought of those cold halls weighed his mind. When he returned home, it would be for his coronation. He would finally be able to do good in the world, avenge the wrongs of the past. Avenge his lost family. But it would be lonelier than here. 

He scolded himself for the frivolity of his thoughts. He wasn’t here to have friends or enjoy himself or feel good. He was here to learn what he could of the powers who had destroyed his life and country.

A small sound from Ashe broke into his thoughts. “Can I… can I have some of that soap?” 

Dimitri nodded and reached for the shelf, fished another bar of pleasant-scented soap from the tray and passed it across the pool to Ashe. Ashe probably had had a hand in harvesting the herbs that went into it, Dimitri thought. A small task, but one he deserved thanks for.

“And... I’m still sorry, for, uh, staring.” Ashe turned away, face pink. Or maybe that was just from the steam.

Dimitri shook his head. “It’s forgiven, Ashe. Your eyes are… kinder than most.”

Ashe looked as if he wanted to say something to that, but he turned away, and Dimitri didn't press. Yes, the things that truly troubled him were far worse than Ashe knew, and Dimitri would do what he must to keep Ashe from knowing. But even so, his cheerful words were soothing out of proportion to their sound. It was good to know Ashe trusted him, and humbling to have him admire Dimitri as a man and not as a king. 

They rested in quiet a little longer, but they couldn’t justify the indulgence forever. Or keep Dedue and Mercedes waiting. But Ashe’s admiration, his trust, stuck with Dimitri as the two of them climbed out of the bath and dressed, as he followed Ashe to the kitchen and accepted cookies he couldn’t taste from platters piled with sweets. It stayed warm at the back of his mind as he returned to his room and prepared for bed. For once in a long time, he thought that he might deserve this companionship and this trust so long as he worked for the good of his friends and Kingdom. It was a deeply comforting thought, enough to keep away the dark and the voices, if only for a short time.

**Author's Note:**

> Visit my discord! https://discord.gg/ka8wxHN


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